Thursday - Neustadt Archives
John was right.... the sun rises around 4 a.m.. I woke up then, but rolled over and was able to sleep in till 5 a.m.! John sleeps with nightshades over his eyes and earplugs to block out his noisy sister. He definitely has the right idea. Maybe the nightshades will allow me to get another hour of sleep. I'll have to try it.
We're really were enjoying having our own little (and it is very little) kitchen. But it is very serviceable and gives us a certain freedom we like. This morning, I scrambled 2 eggs for John, sliced some fresh strawberries and kiwis, made hot tea and set out the bread, meats and cheeses. Our only problem, we forgot to buy salt...... but we managed quite well.
Our small apartment kitchen
Today was the most important day for John. By 8:15 a.m., we were on the road to Neustadt...... on our way to the Archives for a full day of research. The records at these archives are the main reason for this trip. The information we collect today gives John lots of information for his database.
Along the way, we stopped for gas at the ARAL gas station. Our rental car uses diesel gas, which costs less than the regular gas..... only .86 Euros per Liter. We filled up our half empty tank with 30 Liters for a total of 26.50 Euros. That is roughly $3.50 a gallon in US terms. When we get home, we won’t complain about the price of gas!
By 9:30, we were at the Neustadt Archives. We thought they opened at 10 a.m., but found out the hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursdays. By the time we got there, several others were diligently working on their research in the church books.
John introduced himself to Mrs. Müller, who is recently in charge of the Archives. He presented the Archives with the index of the Burg Births from 1700 to 1766 that he has worked on for the past year. She was very pleased, as they do not have this index done. Various researchers have done other indexes and these are always welcomed. You can look up a family name, and find out the information on a birth, marriage, death or confirmation....depending on the indexes available. These indexes will then direct you to the appropriate page in the church books so you can see the entry. Indexes are always easier to read, as they are typed.
Wiebke Dannenberg immediately came up and introduced herself to John. They met through this website, and for the past two years, she has generously contributed information to the Fehmarn database. Fortunately, for us, she speaks English and this is very helpful to us. Very few people at the Archives speak enough English for us to communicate with them, so it always helps when someone, like Wiebke, kindly offers to help us by translating.
John and Wiebke Dannenberg
We went into a large side room with one main table where 6 others were doing research in the original church books. Some of the other people working at the table, John knew from previous years....... Mrs. Rudat and Mr. Schmütz. Mrs. Rudat has also contributed information for the database during the past three years. Contributions from other researchers are very much appreciated by John.
John met Ralf Wenn, who e-mailed him last year seeking information on his Fehmarn ancestors. He mostly researches ancestors from Heiliengehafen and Großenbrode, as this is where his family comes from. The records for these two towns are not available in America, so John told Ralf to e-mail him any information he had on this area. Many Fehmarnaners left the island and settled in these two close towns on the mainland. Many of the people born on Fehmarn are marrying, living and then dying in this area, so the information Ralf contributes is very important to John and his database.
Ralf Wenn and John
In fact, it was a suggestion from Ralf that directed us to take the photos of the gravesites in the Heiligenhafen Cemetery. We have only found one of the two cemeteries so far, but John has plans to return and try to find the other one on Friday or Saturday. The headstones give John the death dates he uses for his database. Also, he posts these photos in his virtual cemetery on the website.
Also, doing research was Wilhelm Kranz, who told us he has been researching his family history for about 50 years. On this day, he was working on his Haselhorst line, and John asked him to contribute his information for the database. He said he would contact him via e-mail.
Mrs. Rudat, Joachim Strehse and Wilhelm Kranz working in
Neustadt archive
Joachim Strehse and Mrs. Rudat work on their information with the use of their laptop computers. It is a curious blend of old and new in this very busy room. Everyone in this room works very hard on their research. Occasionally, they stop and discuss a point or ask each other about a name.
Everyone working diligently on family research
While I sat and worked on recording some of the information from the Petersdorf Marriage book, John started researching information for other people who have contacted him looking for their ancestors. Occasionally, he cannot find the right information, due to the records not being available on microfilm in the LDS Family Library in our local area. He knows what records are in Neustadt Archives, so he will save those questions till we make our trip in the spring. Now, John must find the answers to these stray inquiries. Wiebke was kindly helping John find the information he needed and before long they were done. Then John started to transcribe Landkirchen Marriage records of the early 1900's.
About noon, John and I ate our sandwiches that we made this morning. No one wants to stop for very long..... so lunch or snacks are eaten while everyone takes a short break. Once you start looking up information, you get caught up in it and don't want to stop.
Every few hours, I must leave, go back to our parked car and purchase more time on the parking machine. I get another paper receipt, put it on the dash to indicate we have more paid time to park, and then walk back to the Archives. John never stops
It's a beautiful sunny day, so the short walk is refreshing. Along the 3-block walk, I looked in a few stores of interest to me. My favorite is the bakery on the corner. After purchasing some pastries and cute candy items, I return to the research room to help John some more.
Shortly after lunch, Erna Lübker came into the room. We had seen her on Tuesday in the Burg City Archives. She showed John some more papers on her research of the American relations she was looking for. We took notes, as John will contact a friend in Iowa who will probably be able to help her. She was very grateful.
The whole day of research was very productive for John and gave him lots more information. This new information will keep him very busy once he returns home. The new friends we met, and seeing the old friends is very important to John, as they all are very helpful in contributing to the database of Fehmarn information.
Even though the Archives closes at 4 p.m., it wasn't 4:30 that we packed up our equipment and actually left. We have an appointment for Dinner at 6 p.m. and must get back to our room to get ready
Promptly at 6 p.m., our dinner companions, Peter and Margot Seyer arrived. We actually met them on the island last year, and we were looking forward to another meeting. Peter researches his family history and has asked John for help thru e-mails about 2 years ago. He has been very helpful, sending corrections to John's work when he finds them. John welcomes all additions and corrections to all family lines. Peter came ready to ask questions...... but first we decided to go to dinner.
Margot suggested the Wisser's Hotel Restaurant. This was fine for us, as this was one of the older establishments and we had not eaten there yet. It is on Main Street in Burg and the Wisser's Hotel dates back to the late 1700's.
Wisser's Hotel & Restaurant in Burg
We really enjoy talking to the Seyer’s, as we are constantly trying to learn new things. Although Peter speaks very little English, Margot has practiced and does quite well. We talked about the differences between Germany and Florida, where we live. We also confessed to some of the mistakes we have made in the past, due to our lack of knowledge of the language. The Seyer’s are well traveled, and spoke of their recent vacation to the Canary Islands. The conversation also turned to genealogy and John's research, as it so often does..... as that is the purpose of this trip.
Margot answered all my questions about the items on the menu, so I ordered a wonderful Lamb dinner. The food was plentiful and excellent. Dinner with the Seyer’s was very enjoyable for us and by 8:30, we all went back to the apartment for further discussions on genealogy.
John working with Peter & Margot Seyer
Peter took out his charts and papers and asked several questions of John on the Seyer family line. While they discussed the genealogy, Margot and I discussed our mutual interest in photos of the local flowers, their interest in camping and I showed her the tablecloths that I had purchased on this trip. Everyone had a very enjoyable evening and after visiting for a few hours, we said our good-byes till next year to our good friends, the Seyer’s.